Hon. Michael L. Brown

Jessica Kelley, the Courtroom Deputy Clerk, is your principal point of contact on matters related to this case. Communications with Ms. Kelley should be via email or in writing addressed as follows: Honorable Michael L. Brown ATTN: Jessica Kelley Courtroom Deputy Clerk 1942 United States Courthouse 75 Ted Turner Drive, SW Atlanta, GA 30303-3309 Jessica_Kelley@gand.uscourts.gov If a telephone call is necessary, you may reach Ms. Kelley at 404-215-1535 (direct dial). Please note that Ms. Kelley is often in the courtroom, so telephone messages may not be returned for 24 hours. Neither the parties nor their counsel should discuss the merits of the case with Ms. Kelley or any of the Court's law clerks.

The Court generally will not approve extensions of page limitations. Parties seeking an extension of the page limit must do so at least five (5) days in advance of their filing deadline and should explain with specificity the reasons necessitating the extension. If a party files a motion to extend the page limit at the same time his or her brief is due, the extension request will be denied absent a compelling and unanticipated reason for violating this rule. The Court will not consider any arguments made in pages that exceed the Local Rules' requirements.

In accordance with Local Rule 7.1E, motions are usually decided without oral argument, but the Court will consider any request for hearing. If oral argument is requested, the party or parties should specify the particular reasons argument may be helpful to the Court and what issues will be the focus of the proposed argument. Moreover, the Court is inclined to grant a request for oral argument on a contested substantive motion if the request states that a lawyer of less than five years out of law school will be chiefly responsible for conducting the oral argument, it being the Court's belief that new lawyers need more opportunities for court appearances than they usually receive. More senior attorneys may participate as necessary, but the junior attorney must have a lead role.

The parties shall submit courtesy copies by hand-delivery to chambers of (1) any emergency motions filed pursuant to Local Rule 7.2B or (2) motions for temporary restraining orders. Otherwise, courtesy copies are unnecessary and should not be submitted to the Court unless specifically requested.

For all consent, unopposed, or joint motions, the filing party shall include a proposed order granting the motion.

Please note: It is not the Court's practice to allow entire pleadings to be sealed from public view, but only to allow the redaction of specific portions of a pleading if a proper foundation is laid that protection of confidential or proprietary information is required. Counsel should use discretion in requesting protection for a document, material, or information within documents or pleadings and only seek protection where factually necessary and legally permitted (e.g., bank account numbers, scientific formulas, confidential pricing calculations).

In accordance with Local Rule 7.1E, motions are usually decided without oral argument, but the Court will consider any request for hearing. If oral argument is requested, the party or parties should specify the particular reasons argument may be helpful to the Court and what issues will be the focus of the proposed argument. Moreover, the Court is inclined to grant a request for oral argument on a contested substantive motion if the request states that a lawyer of less than five years out of law school will be chiefly responsible for conducting the oral argument, it being the Court's belief that new lawyers need more opportunities for court appearances than they usually receive. More senior attorneys may participate as necessary, but the junior attorney must have a lead role.

The Court will work to reduce delay and inefficiency arising from discovery disputes. The parties, therefore, must submit discovery disputes to the Court before formal motions to compel or motions for a protective order are filed. In the event a discovery dispute arises, the parties are required to meet and confer in an effort to resolve the dispute. Counsel or pro se litigants are required to confer -- by telephone or in person -- in good faith before bringing a discovery dispute to the Court. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(c) and 37(a)(1); LR 37.1A, NDGa. The duty to confer is not satisfied by sending a written document, such as a letter, email, or fax, to the adversary, unless repeated attempts to confer by telephone or in person are unsuccessful due to the conduct of the adversary. If the dispute cannot be resolved, the parties shall electronically file on the docket a Joint Statement Regarding Discovery Dispute, using the "Notice of Filing" event, outlining their positions on each of the discovery items in dispute. The statement shall not exceed three (3) pages, single-spaced, in a font accepted by the Local Rules. The parties are required to attach as an exhibit to the statement an excerpt of the relevant discovery requests including only the language of the specific requests and, potentially, the disputed responses that are the subject of the dispute. The parties should not attach an entire copy of their interrogatories, requests for production of documents, or requests for admission. After reviewing the dispute, the Court will determine whether the dispute can be resolved on the papers or whether a conference is necessary and will notify the parties accordingly. All discovery conferences will be recorded by a court reporter. Motions to compel, to quash a subpoena, for a protective order, or for sanctions ordinarily may NOT be filed without a prior conference with the Court.